NPF News

DENVER  National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) announced today that California Sunbirds infielder Brandy Thurman will replace Arizonas Wendy Allen on the West roster in the leagues first all-star series on July 13 and 14 in Oklahoma City, Okla.

Thurman will join fellow teammates, Jaime Foutch and Julie Marshall, on the NPF West All-Star team. Allen was forced to decline her invitation to the leagues first-ever all-star game due to a prior commitment.

The 2004 All-Star Game will feature two teams comprised of NPFs top players fighting for geographical bragging rights and midseason supremacy. Judy Martino of the Akron Racers will coach the east all-stars, where Texas Thunder head coach Wayne Daigle will lead the west team.

The NPF East All-Stars will consist of standouts from the Akron Racers, New England Riptide and NY/NJ Juggernaut, while the NPF West All-Stars will include all-stars from the Heat, Sunbirds and Texas Thunder.

In addition to the NPF All-Star Game on Wednesday, July 14, the two all-star teams will take on TEAM USA in a doubleheader on Tuesday, July 13. The first game is scheduled to begin at 5pm CDT

Tickets can be purchased by calling ASA at (405) 425-3427 or a ticket order form can be downloaded from the league website at www.profastpitch.com. Tickets for Tuesdays doubleheader are $10, tickets for the NPF All-Star Game on Wednesday, July 14th are only $8 or a two-day series ticket can be purchased at the discounted price of $15. Fans unable to attend will be able to listen to the games live by visiting www.npf.prosportsradio.com and clicking on the all-star game logo.

NPF, the worlds premier professional fastpitch softball league for women, consists of six teams located throughout the United States and features former USA Softball Womens National Team members, collegiate All-Americans and all-conference selections. NPFs 60-game regular-season schedule began on Tuesday, June 1 and concludes Wednesday, Aug. 18. The 2004 season features the inaugural NPF All-Star Game, the first-ever NPF Championship Semifinal and the first NPF Championship Series.

National Pro Fastpitch is the only professional womens fastpitch league in the United States. The league is headquartered in Denver, and has been in operation since 1997 under the names Womens Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Womens Professional Softball League (WPSL).